I'm not really one of those people that hates getting older, but it does make you think about things. With CHUCK ending, I've been thinking about how some TV shows, movies, and music can really define different times in your life.
My earliest memory is sitting in a high chair watching a Wham video (I think it was "Careless Whisper"). When I started Kindergarten, I was watching WILLY WONKA AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY pretty much 24/7. Starting in sixth grade, I got to "stay up late" on Thursdays and watch ER with my Mom. Unfortunately, when I think of Senior year of high school, I think of N*SYNC's "Bye Bye Bye" as much as CHAPPELLE'S SHOW reminds me of college and THE O.C. reminds me of my first year of law school.
CHUCK is one of those shows for me, but it came at a very strange time in my life. The show began as I was finishing law school and taking the Bar exam. In a way, I was embarking on my new journey as an attorney at the same time Chuck was starting his spy career.
For the majority of these last five years, I've been basically unemployed. I say that because outside of some contract document review work, I could not find a steady job. Sure, I had my fledgling law practice, and I gained invaluable experience on the few cases I had, but they were few and infrequent. Meanwhile, CHUCK's story was just as rocky. After its second season, ratings weren't great, and it was unknown whether or not it would get a third season.
It wasn't looking good, but people who loved the show and wanted it to succeed were coming out by the hundreds, demanding that the show be renewed. It worked. Chuck was renewed for a third season. Then a fourth. Then a fifth. I'm proud to say I was one of those vocal fans campaigning for the show.
If it wasn't looking good for CHUCK, it was looking pretty bleak for me, too. As I've written before, it can get pretty depressing and hopeless when you're unemployed. The only reason I got through it is because I had people who loved me and wanted me to succeed just like CHUCK. With every laugh and every word of encouragement, my hope was renewed. I was renewed. And as I was there for CHUCK, it was there for me too, providing laughs and getting my mind off of things, if only for an hour a week.
Now, as CHUCK rides off into the sunset after five great seasons and a very satisfying finale, I'm starting a new phase of my life. I'm turning thirty, and next week I'll be starting my new, full-time job.
As I leave behind this last few years of struggle and uncertainty, I'll take with me all the ways that my friends and family helped me through it. I'll remember the lessons I learned. I'll remember the bad days.
And, of course, I'll remember CHUCK.
